Nutter will take a turn on ballet stage

PHILADELPHIA There will be no tights.

That's the word from Mayor Nutter's office as the mayor prepares for his first appearance with the Pennsylvania Ballet, scheduled for Sunday afternoon at the Academy of Music.

The city's 56-year-old chief executive has a one-performance-only role as "The Mayor" in Coppélia, a production described by the company as "ballet's greatest comedy."

Nutter will be on stage about 35 minutes, wearing a dark shirt, dark slacks, a top hat, and a cape, his press secretary, Mark McDonald, said.

"He's not dancing, and he doesn't have a speaking role per se, but he may be greeting and talking to townspeople in the background while things are going on in front of him. That is more or less it," McDonald said.

Coppélia is the story of a toy maker in a 19th-century village who makes a doll and dreams that one day she will come to life.

Tickets, ranging from $25 to $125, are still available.

Nutter spun records as a DJ named "Mixmaster Mike" before he got into politics. As mayor, he has held a baton in front of the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, and the Philly Pops, but Sunday will mark his first appearance in a ballet.

He's not the first Philadelphia mayor to perform with the Pennsylvania Ballet. That honor went to Ed Rendell, playing the same role in Coppélia in the 1990s.

Rendell didn't wear tights, either.

215-854-5885 @bobwarner1